Demand-First Review

Principle

Audit this causal chain before implementation quality:

root outcome or invariant → normalized demand → owning layer → contract → consumer

A call site proves usage, not legitimacy or shape. No call site raises the burden of proof, not an automatic rejection. Real demand may still have the wrong consumer or abstraction.

Workflow

Apply every step to each added API, channel, parameter, type, field, config, or extension point.

1. Reconstruct the demand

List every new surface and exact consumed dimension; one valid consumer does not justify unused fields. Trace current and linked consumers to their user outcome, business rule, or system invariant. Inspect adjacent implementations, then ask: without the current API and history, would the demand remain and would this contract still be natural? Do not rely only on the PR description.

2. Audit consumer legitimacy